


cozy beginnings

by mixtapestar



Series: Comfortween 2020 [2]
Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Beast (The Magicians), Crushes, Gen, Julia at brakebills, Pre-Quentin Coldwater/Eliot Waugh - Freeform, Season/Series 01, Self-Doubt, Sleepovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:34:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26777464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mixtapestar/pseuds/mixtapestar
Summary: In their early days at Brakebills, Quentin and Julia have a sleepover like old times.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Quentin Coldwater & Julia Wicker
Series: Comfortween 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1948594
Comments: 13
Kudos: 26
Collections: Comfortween 2020





	cozy beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> For [Comfortween](https://hurtcomfortex.dreamwidth.org/23354.html) Day 2: Comfort Media (sleepovers)
> 
> Thanks to Hoko & Rubi for reading through! <3

After two days of not seeing each other, even once, Julia invites him over to the attic above the Library, her new place of residence with the other Knowledge kids. "C'mon, Q, it'll be just like the sleepovers we had when we were kids."

Quentin accepts, if only to get a break from the Physical Kids' Cottage. Plus, he does want to catch up with Julia. It feels like a lifetime has passed in the last two days.

It's just starting to feel like fall, the nighttime temperature dipping down into the forties, so Quentin throws his oft-neglected flannel pajamas in his bag, really leaning into the whole sleepover vibe. Julia will appreciate that.

He barely makes it five minutes in the privacy of her room before he starts talking about Eliot. "And then he said 'let's not talk,' and I swear, there was this _look_ in his eye, but Kady blasted down the damn door and ruined the whole moment." He takes in Julia's smirk, and feels his face heat. "What?"

"Nothing," she says, sipping from her wine glass, all fake-innocence. "I thought we were into Alice, is all."

"We are! I mean, I am. But, y'know. It's like when we started high school and that local private school had just closed down. So many new, beautiful people."

"So little self-esteem," she finishes, nodding.

"Tell me about it," Quentin mutters. He tops off his wine. "Enough about me. What happened with James?"

Her look darkens, and Quentin immediately feels guilty for monopolizing the conversation. This is probably why she invited him over in the first place.

"James and I are done. For good this time."

"I'm sorry, Jules."

"Don't be. It's not even his fault, it's mine. I went over to tell him everything, about magic, Brakebills, all of it. But when the time came, I didn't want to share it. This fundamental thing I've learned about myself, that I happen to be really fucking good at," Quentin raises his glass to that, "and I kept it to myself. I couldn't picture any result that I actually wanted. If he freaked out, it'd be over. If he loved it, I'd have to keep balancing two parts of my life." She scrunches up her nose. "I dunno, does that make me a terrible person? It was gonna take work, so I bailed?"

"You're not a terrible person," Quentin assures her. "James is part of our life before Brakebills. And, y'know, he's hot," Julia giggles, "but there's a reason you guys have broken up like five times before. He was an easy choice, not necessarily the right one."

Julia raises her eyebrows. Her mischievous look has Quentin checking how much wine they've already had. "Are you just saying that because you're gonna go console him now? Get a little bi-curious rebound action?"

Quentin snorts. "Okay, I take it back, you are terrible." It was _one time_ , and James's advances were so unexpected that he couldn't help but act on his long-time crush. He'd felt so guilty, he'd confessed to Julia immediately. "I'm never gonna live that down, am I?"

"Hey, I don't blame you. You said it yourself, he _is_ hot." She takes a deep breath, releasing it on a loud sigh. "And you're right. It should've been over a while ago. Probably a sign that I'm joking so much about it already even though it just happened."

She sets her glass down in front of her, fingers moving smoothly in tuts that Quentin has yet to nail down, and then her wine starts flowing through her glass in waves, like a little mini-ocean. Quentin stretches out on his stomach, propping up on his elbows and resting his head in his hands as he watches her magic at work. He still feels like an imposter here at Brakebills, but at least Julia is with him.

"Are you going to do anything about Eliot?" Julia finally asks, breaking the silence.

" _Ugggh_ ," Quentin moans. "No? I don't know. He seems kind of like a love 'em and leave 'em type, doesn't he?"

Julia's eyebrows shoot up again, and he realizes he's said too much. "Since when is that a problem?" Quentin blushes, feeling more caught out on the fact that he wants to hold Eliot's hand than the fact that he wants to sleep with him. "Oh, you _like_ him."

"God, do you have to say it like that?" He buries his head in his hands. "Yes, I want to be his fucking friend. And his _fucking_ friend."

"You should tell him that. He seems like he'd be amenable."

He looks up at her, trying to convince himself of her words. "I don't wanna be clingy."

Julia scoffs. "Remember Ellen Zimmerman?"

"Oh god," Quentin says. His first girlfriend, if you could count elementary school flings as relationships. She'd follow him around at recess like a shadow. They finally 'broke up' because he wouldn't stop talking to Julia so much.

"That's clingy. Wanting to be friends with benefits with your hot new classmate? Not clingy."

It sounds so simple when she says it, but self-doubt keeps creeping in anyway. "He probably doesn't even like me."

Julia studies him for a second, looking serious. "This book quest that he took you on yesterday—why was it he needed your help?"

"I mean, he made me carry the box."

" _Q_."

"Okay, fine! He totally didn't have to invite me. But I'm also the most naive and, like, _unskilled_ of the first years, he might have just invited me because he feels sorry for me."

Julia's brow furrows, and she takes both of their wine glasses, setting them aside. "Enough. _We have magic_. Both of us." She pulls Quentin's bag to her side and starts rummaging through. Quentin doesn't try to stop her; he trusts her. Eventually, she pulls out a deck of cards, and Quentin groans. "Don't moan at me. You learned magic tricks, sleight of hand and shit, but along the way you started using real magic."

"Making a card actually disappear doesn't have a lot of practical applications."

"Maybe not, but making other things disappear might." She pulls out the deck and hands it to him. It's like muscle memory to start shuffling them, first with his hands, and then continuing on with magic. "We're just getting started here. Don't sell yourself short."

He keeps messing around with the cards, eventually building them into a castle like Whitespire from the Fillory books that makes Julia clap with delight.

"Thanks, Jules. I'm glad you're here."

Julia smiles and pulls him into a hug. "Me too."

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are love! <3


End file.
